http://www.cfdp.info/history/Chron_jb.htm
A Pacifica Chronology - Jeff Blankfort
The present conflict between KPFA and the Pacifica Foundation did not begin with the firing of station general manager Nicole Sawaya on March 31 or Larry Bensky on April 7. It did not begin with a controversial vote by the Pacifica National Board in February that stripped the local advisory board of any representation on the national board. And it did not begin with the election of Mary Frances Berry to the chair of the board or the hiring of Lynn Chadwick as executive director. For the beginning you have to go back, at least, to September 92 and follow the thread of events.
Chronology of Abuses By The Pacifica Management & Board of Directors.
1991-1992 "Strategy for National Programming" a plan to create a NPR - like National Program Service funded with donations from corporate foundations like Pew, Ford and MacArthur is drafted by Pacifica Management.
Feb. 1993 - Pacifica Board approves "Strategy for National Programming." KPFA Manager Pat Scott, embroiled in battles with staff at KPFA, is sent by Pacifica Executive Director David Salniker to lobby Congress, which is threatening to de-fund Pacifica.
1994 - Pat Scott is made acting Pacifica Executive Director and begins dictating program formats to stations. She participates on CPB "task force" with Lynn Chadwick, Executive Director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, that recommends new funding guidelines tying stations to Arbitron ratings and higher fundraising goals. Purges begin at WPFW (Washington, D.C.).
1995 Jan. 1995 - Pat Scott fires KPFK (L.A.) management and seizes control of books. Contract negotiations there are suspended. Gag rules are enforced against any staff member trying to inform the public regarding the firings. Purges of programmers begin at KPFK. Feb. 10 - KPFK producer Al Huebner is removed for criticizing firing of KPFK managers. His engineer, Neal Connor is threatened with removal for not cutting Al's mic
Feb. 1995 - Pacifica Program Directors are told by hired consultants to mainstream the programming.
March -April 1995 - A union-busting organization, American Consulting Group, is hired by Pacifica to draft new contracts stripping workers of all say in the organization, eliminating the right to strike, and unpaid staff from the stations' unions.
June 1995 - Pacifica Board closes all future finance committee meetings to the public in violation of federal communications law. Board minutes and board meetings are now "confidential."
July 1995 - Pacifica Board Executive Committee issues a "my way or the highway memo" announcing "vast changes" and advising Local Advisory Board members who disagree with the new direction of Pacifica to resign.
August 1995 - Massive purge of KPFA programmers by KPFA general manager Marci Lockwood under direction of Scott.
Sept. 1995 - Observers, including Take Back KPFA representative barred from National Board meeting in Houston.
Nov. 1995 - Brian McConnville, investigator from Inspector General's office of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), learns of closed board meetings and begins investigation of Pacifica's violation of open meeting rules. He is fired 17 days later before he can release a critical report after Pacifica's lawyer goes over his head to quash the investigation. Deputy IG Director Mike Donavan, who looks into the Pacifica Board's actions is also fired on eve of making a critical report.
1996 Feb. 1996 - KPFK producer Ron Wilkins and his guests are removed from the air mid-broadcast and banned from KPFK for attempting to discuss treatment of African American programmers at KPFK. Bob Marston, who was in the building repairing equipment at the time is also banned because he was talking with Wilkins and the others after they were cut off the air.
Feb. 26, 1996 - "Gag rule" issued by Mark Schubb at KPFK saying that staff will be fired if they let callers criticize Pacifica policy on-air.
May 1996 - Hiring of American Consulting Group is revealed. Pacifica Management lies repeatedly as criticism mounts. Management files a "clarification of unit" with the National Labor Relations Board to have unpaid staff at WBAI removed from the union.
August 29, 1996 - Mark Schubb threatens to ban UE Rep John Fernandes from KPFK
Nov. 1996 - A Pacifica 5 -Year Strategic Plan is released, after a year and a half of secret meetings. It is a blueprint for remaking Pacifica into a top-down corporate hierarchy. More than $60,000 has been spent on union-busting activities
1997 Feb. 1997 - WBAI workers win at the NLRB. Pacifica appeals the decision, spending tens of thousands of dollars of the subscribers' money.
March 1997 - Under fire from listeners and the media, Scott hires Former Justice Dept. spokesperson Burt Glass as Pacifica's first "communications director". He drafts a "cheat sheet'" full of lies and evasions for use in answering questions from the subscribers. Pacifica releases plan to reduce local representation on the National Board by half, which would give the board the ability to appoint a 2/3 majority.This is tabled in June when community members hire lawyer.
April -May 1997 - A "softer" CPB Inspector General's report is released which, nevertheless, cites Pacifica for violating open meeting laws. Scott and Pacifica Board Chair Jack O'Dell fly to Washington and meet privately with CPB Board and lawyers. CPB disregards it own IG's report, and praises the new Pacifica regime.
May 27, 1997 - WBAI Program Director tells the WBAI local board that Pacifica executive director Pat Scott is pressuring Democracy Now producers to downplay criticism of Clinton and to remove Mumia Abu Jamal commentaries.
June 1997 - Mary Frances Berry made new Pacifica Board Chair.
July 1997 - KPFA Manager Marci Lockwood resigns. Lynn Chadwick, Executive Director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, is made manager of KPFA.
August 1997 - Pacifica writes a gag clause into the contracts for affiliate stations, many of whom have been running disclaimers about union-busting at Pacifica
1998 Feb. 1998 - KPFK Management sends memo barring programmers from encouraging attendance at anti-war demonstrations for Iraq.
April 1998 - Pat Scott resigns and is praised by CPB President Coonrod, former Deputy Director of the Voice of America, and director of Radio Marti, propaganda arm of US vs. Cuba. By now, more than 300 people have been purged from Pacifica stations.
Oct. 1998 - Lynn Chadwick named Executive Director of Pacifica..
Dec. 1998 - Larry Bensky abruptly fired then reinstated after public outcry. KPFA's new manager Nicole Sawaya supports Bensky and allows him to defend himself on the air.
(snip)
August 18, 1999 - An ad runs in the New York Times condemning the actions of Pacifica's Board and Management. It is signed by dozens of prominent activists, intellectuals, journalists and other community leaders.
August 20, 1999 - California legislature holds public hearings in Oakland as to whether Pacifica violated its non-profit status by its recent actions. KPFA staffers testify, in spite of orders by Chadwick that they face termination if they do. A week later, the Legislative Audit Committee subpoenas financial records. Word has leaked out that the Pacifia Board spent more than half a million dollars (of the subscriber's funds) on armed guards and PR experts to support their takeover of KPFA and Pacifica.
August 24, 1999 - Mary Frances Berry makes surprise visit to WBAI for unpublicized meeting with staff. She displays her rancour towards KPFA and its community, and asks if WBAI staff would support the sale of KPFA to create a series of small stations in the South.
August 26, 1999 - National Labor Relations Board oveturns earlier decision; rules to grant Pacifia management request to eject unpaid staff from WBAI's union. Tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars of listener funds have been spent to do this. This action was started by Pat Scott in 1996 to take away all rights from community producers, to be able to purge them more easily.
September 1, 1999 - KPFK reporter Robin Urevich banned for writing an article on censorship by KPFK management.
September 2, 1999 - Legislative Committee votes to subpoena Pacifica financial records.
September 5, 1999 - Enfoque Latino, a Spanish language public affairs program that has aired on KPFK for 13 years is cancelled after covering the Pacifica crisis from a perspective critical of KPFK and Pacifica Management.
Oct. 26, 1999 -16 Radio stations to boycott Pacifica Network Programming on
October 27: KGNU, KUNM, WJFF, WGOR, KZYX, KKFI, WRPI, KRZA, KSVR, KMUD, WORT, WERU, KCSB, KBOO, KDUR.
Oct. 1999 - KPFA has most successful fund drive raising over $650,000. Pacifica Board passes resolutions to not sell any stations or use any listener contributions to pay for armed guards during KPFA lockout
Nov. 1, 1999 - Pacifica News Director Dan Coughlin is removed after he airs a report of the one-day boycott of Pacifica Programming by 16 Pacifica Affiliate stations.
Dec. 9, 1999 - Pacifica's WPFW in Washington DC axes FAIR's Counterspin: media criticism show canceled after three earlier instances of censorship.